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GRAND FORKS – A second community meeting for the University Avenue Corridor project allowed attendees to talk about the events they would like to see held in and around the corridor.
Attendees at the Wednesday meeting were able to talk in small groups to share some of the events they would like to see adopted for the corridor.
One suggestion was to have a progressive block party, at which various activities would be held at different locations along University Avenue. Some other ideas included looking at reestablishing past events, such as bringing the Potato Bowl parade down the corridor, or the return of the french fry feed, held during Potato Bowl week.
Another: Having some sort of welcome event in August, encouraging university students and residents to meet. At the same time could be an event for returning students, featuring games, live music and food trucks.
Also, creating a neighborhood association would “generate some energy and passion to get things going," one person suggested.
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University Corridor is the area stretching along University Avenue from Columbia Road to North Third Street. It's been the focus of community efforts to better tie the core of the city to the university.
By the end of the meeting, tasks were created for attendees and group organizers to work on for the next meeting. Among them: Looking into the required permits for block parties, finding out what other events may be going on in the area at the time and brainstorming ideas for what food should be at the events.
Attendees agreed that having events would help to build community, which was one of the top priorities identified at last month’s meeting . Other priorities that will be discussed further at the next meeting include safety along the corridor — such as evaluating speed limits, having better street lighting and ensuring bicyclists and pedestrians are safe — as well as the beautification of the corridor.
The next community meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 29, at the University Lutheran Church lounge. People who were not able to attend Wednesday’s meeting but are interested in getting involved can contact organizers by email at universityavenuegf@gmail.com.
